Remote reading in the era of COVID-19
If you have read stories about how radiology and certified imaging informatics professionals (CIIPs) were able to easily move to remote reading due to the pandemic, you only heard part of the story. Frontline CIIPs who helped set up and support the move shared some of those stories in a session during the recent SIIM 2020 Annual Meeting.
As a non-CIIP, I was surprised to learn how much of a monumental shift it is for radiologists and CIIP staff as they embrace remote working. It makes sense that the day-to-day operations of these two roles assume an onsite functionality, but now that COVID-19 has a firm grip on everyone’s daily operations, fast action, supportable, and dependable systems and solutions are more critical than ever.
I also work remotely now. And knowing how much it took for me, as a non-CIIP, to make that switch, I understand why a uniform, documented plan and set of expectations – as well as the appropriate amount of prep time – is critical to success, for both continued support, and the actual reading.
In the very short time I have worked remotely, I have learned that if an IT support resource can provide me with clear, concise instructional documents – preferably with end-user friendly video or picture guides – I can troubleshoot or complete support processes with general ease. Creating a library of these guides seems paramount in today’s environment for the CIIP staff.
They will also prove fruitful in the future, as we experience possible waves of stay-at-home measures, a new health emergency, or another event that requires us to work from home.
Supporting CIIPs and RADs
We’re doing our best to help support remote CIIPs and radiologists (RADs). For example, we developed our enterprise imaging solution portfolio with CIIP staff and RADs top of mind. Much of our healthcare offering carries zero footprint functionality and allows for remote access while offering a high level of security, for example.
We further support the CIIP community by providing end-user facing documents for set up and troubleshooting, so our customers are not starting from scratch when creating support content libraries. Additionally, as reading resources set up their home and hardware environments, the already formalized knowledgebase is available to Hyland Community members to aid with every aspect related to our solution offering, including setting it up and maintaining it.
From a non-CIIP viewpoint, the shift in day to day amounts to no less than eating an elephant. However, as they say, the best way to do this is one bite at a time.
The good news is, vendors and partners are here to help – and hungry to supplement customer efforts. Especially when it comes to helping people get or stay healthy.
- Remote reading in the era of COVID-19 - 07/21/2020
